Friday, May 14th
The 134th day of 2010.
There are 231 days left in the year.
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Today's Highlights in History
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On May 14, 1948, the independent state of Israel was proclaimed as British rule in Palestine came to an end. (Go to article.)
On May 14, 1885, Otto Klemperer, who was one of the foremost German conductors, was born. Following his death on July 6, 1973, his obituary appeared in The Times. (Go to obit. | Other Birthdays)
Editorial Cartoon of the Day
On May 14, 1881, Harper's Weekly featured a cartoon about the high price of gas. (See the cartoon and read an explanation.)
On this date in:
1643 Louis XIV became King of France at age 4 on the death of his father, Louis XIII.
1787 Delegates began gathering in Philadelphia for a convention to draw up the U.S. Constitution.
1796 English physician Edward Jenner administered the first vaccination against smallpox.
1804 The Lewis and Clark expedition to explore the Louisiana Territory left St. Louis.
1904 The first Olympic games to be held in the United States opened in St. Louis.
1942 Aaron Copland's "Lincoln Portrait" was first performed, by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.
1942 The Women's Auxiliary Army Corps was established.
1955 Representatives from the Soviet Union and seven other Communist bloc countries signed the Warsaw Pact in Poland.
1973 The United States launched Skylab 1, its first manned space station.
1998 Singer Frank Sinatra died at age 82.
1998 The TV series "Seinfeld" aired its final episode.
2001 The Supreme Court ruled that there is no exception in federal law for people to use marijuana to ease their pain from cancer, AIDS or other illnesses.
2007 DaimlerChrysler said it was selling almost all of Chrysler to private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management for $7.4 billion, backing out of a troubled 1998 takeover.
2008 The Interior Department declared the polar bear a threatened species because of the loss of Arctic sea ice.
2008 Justine Henin became the first woman to retire from tennis while ranked No. 1 in the world.
Current Birthdays
Mark Zuckerberg turns 26 years old today.
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg turns 26 years old today.
68 Byron Dorgan
U.S. senator, D-N.D.
68 Tony Perez
Baseball Hall of Famer
67 Jack Bruce
Rock musician (Cream)
66 George Lucas
Director, producer ("Star Wars" movies)
58 David Byrne
Rock singer (Talking Heads)
58 Robert Zemeckis
Director
49 Tim Roth
Actor
41 Cate Blanchett
Actress
39 Sofia Coppola
Director ("Lost in Translation")
33 Roy Halladay
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher
27 Frank Gore
Football player
27 Amber Tamblyn
Actress ("Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" movies)
17 Miranda Cosgrove
Actress ("iCarly," "Drake and Josh")
Historic Birthdays
Otto Klemperer
5/14/1885 - 7/6/1973
German conductor
(Go to obit.)
61 Margaret of Valois
5/14/1553 - 3/27/1615
Queen consort of Navarre known mainly for her "Memoires"
71 Francois de Callieres
5/14/1645 - 3/5/1717
French author and diplomat
87 Robert Owen
5/14/1771 - 11/17/1858
Welsh manufacturer and social reformer
69 Sir Frederick Borden
5/14/1847 - 1/6/1917
Canadian statesman; helped create Canadian navy
73 Alton Parker
5/14/1852 - 5/10/1926
American politician; opposed Theodore Roosevelt in 1904
51 Kurt Eisner
5/14/1867 - 2/21/1919
German Socialist journalist and statesman
57 Julian Eltinge
5/14/1883 - 3/7/1941
American vaudeville star and famous female impersonator
87 Al White
5/14/1895 - 7/8/1982
American diver and Olympic gold medalist (1924)
66 Mohammad Ayub
5/14/1907 - 4/19/1974
President of Pakistan (1958-1969)
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SOURCE: The Associated Press
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